Meeting Minutes

Nov

No, I’m not talking about the duration of a meeting. Meeting minutes are post-meeting briefs that bring everyone to the same page. These are not verbatim transcripts of the entire meeting, but rather highlight the relevant information. Here’s how it works:

1. Write down the basic information

– Date, time, place of meeting and the names of the people participating in the meeting. This is particularly important if you’re having a meeting with a second party such as a client or a service provider.

2. Record the ‘important’ points during the meeting

– This is why the meeting was held. Are you there to discuss future plans, current issues, or past performance? Use this space to write down questions or discussion topics.

3. Assign follow-up dates and responsibilities

– By talking about the ‘important’ points mentioned above, it will only be natural that more issues branch off from each point. In this portion, make sure that a follow-up plan is put in place that will allow for each issue to be addressed. Each follow-up should have a person assigned to the role; or, if the person is absent, assign a ‘supervisor’ to ensure that the issue is followed-up accordingly. Use this space to record the decisions that have been made.

4. Share the ‘Meeting Minutes’ with all the relevant parties

– Keep in mind that this document is also a task list, so make sure you share it with the relevant people! Email it or share it on a cloud platform like Dropbox or Google Drive.

The most important part in meeting minutes is point #3. This will avoid misunderstandings, clear up questions, and most importantly, record the decisions that were made jointly.